FreePBX 2.9 Feature Set - we need your feedback

[mickecarlsson]

Philippe Lindheimer blogged about FreePBX 2.9 and what we consider to include in FreePBX 2.9.
We need your voice and thoughts.
Please post your requests here: freepbx.org/news/2010-11-17/features-we-are-considering-for-2-9

Some of the ideas are:

• Enhancements to Call Parking now available in 1.8 (and maybe some in 1.6.2), possibly including multiple parking lots
• Providing destinations on extensions for BUSY, NOANSWER and CHANUNAVAIL that can route the call similar to other modules. (Today, it goes to either voicemail/vmx or returns busy if no voicemail, which would be the default if not set).
• Extension "search" module (or ability), so you can type in a number (including wild cards) and have the system show you a list of extensions, ringgroups, etc that match that number (with links to go edit them) or go direct to the appropriate GUI page if you get an exact match.
• Option to have all internal calls to an extension act like an intercom call (auto-answer), but external calls still ring. (With a lot of caveats that would need to be worked out)
• Support for Google Voice Trunks with Asterisk 1.8
• Camp-On Feature using the Asterisk 1.8 CallCompletionRequest Application
• "Reverse CID" using the Asterisk 1.8 CONNECTEDLINE() function (let's you push CNAM information back to the caller such as the internal display name of who is answering the phone), for those phones that support this
• Some level of integration with the Asterisk 1.8 Calendar function (adjusting call flow based on the current state of an external calendar
• Move all the amportal.conf settings into the GUI and configurable there (with the exception of some basic ones like the database credentials), this could have impact on non-FreePBX applications that depend on the settings in this file
• Add Check-box to Feature Code module to indicate which feature codes to create "destinations" for, so they can be used with other modules (e.g. IVR) without having to create a separate Misc Destination for each
• Airport Style paging (message is recorded and once you hang up, the page goes out a short time later)
• End Point Management
• DAHDi card management
• Internal changes that affectively "bootstrap" the FreePBX environment giving a developer access to all the common functions (APIs) that normal FreePBX modules have access to. This could also have some impact on non-FreePBX applications in the eco system that depend on the current structure today but will make it much easier for new external applications to be written and the changes to existing applications should be fairly straight forward.

Quoting from the blog

So … with these ideas as a starting point, tell us what you think. I hope this to be a productive exchange, please try to do so. In order to plan ahead, I will mention that I reserve the right to moderate the discussion if needed to keep it on track, though hope there is no need for that.

What do you think about it? What feature is the most wanted?
Mikael Carlsson
FreePBX Development Team

 

[blanchae]

This is a pretty vague request but I would like to see better error reporting, diagnostics and troubleshooting. I'm not sure how that would be done but maybe it would generate some ideas.

 

[NFCphoneman]

Multiple Park Lots!

 

[ojthecat]

I would like to see some enhancements to the status page.

The ability to drill into the various status objects would be great for example Trunk Registrations if I have four trunks and only three are showing registered I would love to be able to expand the status and see which trunks are registered.

Thank you
Robert

 

[kenn10]

People Need To Take Notice Of This Request

I'll start by saying I do not work for the FreePBX team.

When FreePBX 2.8 was in the works, few people paid much attention to the changes and features coming forth. Upon release of 2.8, people rapidly did upgrades and then started whining and complaining about how everything was changed and how this didn't work like they wanted or how dare the FreePBX team change that.

I encourage everyone who has not tried FreePBX 2.8 do so on a lab box and get familiar with it and then give feedback on needed features for FreePBX 2.9. For example: If people do not like the 2.8 change in the routing screen, then suggest fixes for 2.9 or that an import module be included for flat-file or Excel import.

The features listed as a starting point for 2.9 sound excellent but if you have no idea how FreePBX 2.8 already works, you need to do your research and then pipe up to the FreePBX team with your input. Hopefully, there won't be numerous irate posts and hate-mongering about "Changes no one consulted the users about" if users do their due-diligence with the product now.

I'm using FreePBX 2.8 and like it. Everything I see listed as new features for 2.9 sound really good to me. Now is the time for everyone to get involved and actually steer the product rather than sitting back and then complaining when a new version comes out. Let's all get involved and make this work well! :clapb:

 

[p_lindheimer]

NOTICE EVERYONE:

Please go to the FreePBX.org blog post where this was posted and put your feedback. I will state right now that anything posted here WILL get lost. It's too hard to have a thread pop-up here, and then maybe at Trixbox, and then at Elastix, and then at …

freepbx.org/news/2010-11-17/features-we-are-considering-for-2-9

I will be monitoring comments and inputs and engaging where appropriate on the blog post I provided and will not be looking elsewhere for comments.

If you have already posted here, then please go and put your content on the FreePBX.org blog post so we can concentrate the discussion.

Mike or Ward - if you can, it would be great if you lock this thread. The last thing I want is people sincerely thinking they provided input when it went un-heard because it was not where we are monitoring.

Thanks and thanks in advance for people's input and enthusiasm!